Breaking Point
by rafocy
Summary: Duke finds himself suffering Nathan's wrath, but why now? What craziness has Haven stirred up this time? Slight spoilers for season 1. Setting is either right after season 1 or sometime towards the end. Warning: 1 male on male kiss and violence.
1. Chapter 1

**Breaking Point**

**Duke finds himself suffering Nathan's wrath, but why now? What craziness has Haven stirred up this time? Slight spoilers for season 1. Setting is either right after season 1 or sometime towards the end. Please read and review. **

**Warnings: 1 male on male kiss and violence. Rated M just in case, but it's probably not that bad.  
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**AN: Starting right in on the action. I'm assuming everyone reading this story knows Haven and knows the background info on the characters. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Haven or its characters**

Chapter 1: Dazed and Confused

Duke woke up, lying on a wet cement floor, on his stomach. His hands were tied behind his back, and he could feel rope around his ankles as well. He also had no memory as to how he'd gotten there, but the pounding in his head could account for that. He could feel a lump above his right eye, and the cool floor took away some of the sting. He vaguely remembered a shadow coming around the corner of the Gull with something that somewhat resembled a crow bar.

Now he was lying on a floor that he could only hope was damp with just water. The room was nondescript, with nothing on the walls and no windows. Shelves lined one wall that he could see, and they were stacked with so much junk that it amazed him that they didn't collapse with all the weight. He heard a set of footsteps coming his way, but the coolness of the floor and the vertigo that would surely follow if he sat up too quickly, kept him from looking to see who it was.

"Are you awake?" A voice asked. Before he could respond a booted foot connected with the back of his head hard enough to snap it forward.

"Somehow I don't think kicking me in the head is going to keep me conscious," he commented, ignoring the dull pain. He had recognized the voice, but there was no way, no way in hell it was… "Nathan?" Nathan's face appeared out of the shadows.

"Sleep well?" he asked flatly.

"What the hell is going on?" Duke demanded. He wasn't one to take kindly to practical jokes of this magnitude, and he really didn't think Nathan was capable of anything this elaborate anyway.

"Just a little payback," Nathan said noncommittally as he grabbed Duke's shoulders and yanked him into a kneeling position.

"Payback for what?"

"Everything." Keeping on hand firmly on Duke's shoulders, Nathan pulled back his fist and smashed it into Duke's jaw three times before finishing with a hard drive to his gut. As Nathan let go, Duke slumped to the ground gasping for air through the pain and the blood in his mouth. Once he'd regained a normal breathing pattern, Nathan yanked him up again, but this time let him go to walk to a table on the far side of the room that Duke hadn't been able to see when he first woke up.

"So everything huh? That's a lot to be pissed about," Duke commented, spitting out some of the blood in his mouth. Ignoring the statement, Nathan picked up a hockey stick that had been on the table. Duke shook his head at the ridiculousness of the object. Who carried a hockey stick around? More importantly, why was _Nathan_ carrying a hockey stick around? "Can I ask what brought on this sudden plight of revenge?" The memory of Nathan going crazy a several months ago had come to mind, but this Nathan seemed completely in control of his actions. Nathan walked back to him slowly, cradling the hockey stick as if it would suddenly disintegrate before their eyes.

"I've had enough of you," he said, his tone becoming sharp and dangerous. "I'm not going to take any more of your crap." He smashed the hockey stick across Duke's shoulders. The stick shattered in the middle and pitched Duke forward. He slammed into the ground and the wind was knocked out of him again. Regaining his breath a little quicker this time around, Duke struggled back into a kneeling position on his own as Nathan walked back towards the table.

"What's next huh? Are you going to smash my face in with a bowling ball?" he asked. Nathan paused and looked back at him with a thoughtful expression.

"That's an interesting idea. I'm sure I could find a bowling ball around here somewhere," he said smirking. Duke couldn't really imagine Nathan attacking him with a bowling ball, although he hadn't exactly planned for the hockey stick attack either, but he decided to negate the suggestion just in case.

"Yeah, but that would knock me unconscious and what fun would that be right?" Duke let out a nervous laugh. Nathan smiled again before turning back to his table. Duke felt a cold shiver snake its way down his spine. He'd never seen a smile so heartless and cruel before and that was coming from seeing a lot of shady characters in his life. Nathan walked back to him with a baseball bat in his hand this time. "What is this really about?" Duke asked quietly. Nathan slid the bat under Duke's chin and lifted his head up.

"This is for every time you punched me to see if I could feel it. It's for every time you stabbed me, for every lie, for every law that you broke. Like I said before, this is for everything." Nathan pulled back into a swinging stance.

Duke tried to duck out of the way as the bat came flying towards him, but it connected against his left shoulder and sent him sprawling to the floor. This time just knocking him down didn't seem to be enough. Nathan swung again and this time hitting the middle of his back. Duke let out a string of breathless curses and attempted to crawl out of Nathan's range.

"There's nowhere to go," Nathan taunted. No sooner had he said this then Duke came to the end of the rope around his ankles. He twisted around to see what he was attached to, but the bat came out of came again and slammed into his face. Dazed, but still somewhat able to focus, Duke gave up trying to get away and just waited for the next blow. When nothing happened he carefully shifted his battered body until he could see Nathan again.

"Shit," he gasped. He closed his eyes and tried to pretend he hadn't seen the six inch knife in Nathan's hand. "Shit, shit, shit." He curled into a defensive ball as he heard Nathan stepping towards him again, but then he was pulled roughly back to his knees. "Come on Nathan, we've been through this already. We were kids, we didn't know any better," Duke pleaded.

"I knew better," Nathan said quietly. He traced Duke's jaw with the point of the blade with his eyes never leaving the cold hard steel as it traveled down his throat and along the neckline of his shirt. Realizing that pleading wasn't getting anywhere, Duke let out a half amused grunt.

"Is this supposed to be turning me on or something?"

"I don't know, is it?" Duke screamed as Nathan shoved the blade right through his left shoulder and then yanked it back out again. If Nathan's hand hadn't been on his chest he probably would have been reacquainted with the floor.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he shouted through the pain. Nathan circled around behind him. Duke felt the knife slip between his hands and then the rope was cut off. His arms automatically swung forward, which only sent a sharp shooting pain through his shoulder. Nathan came back around in front of him, grabbed the front of his shirt and lifted him to a standing position before slamming him against the wall.

"Turning you on yet?" He smirked and before Duke could answer, crushed their lips together. Duke tried to push him away, but with one arm out of commission it was all but impossible. He nearly gagged as Nathan shoved his tongue down his throat. When Nathan finally pulled away, they were both panting. Duke suddenly felt himself being shoved back onto his knees. Nathan curled his fingers into Duke's hair and pulled his head back. Duke felt the knife press against his exposed throat and then Nathan's lips right next to his ear. "If you tell anyone about this I will come to you in the night and slit your throat, understand?" Duke gave him a jerky nod. The knife was removed and everything went black.

…

Audrey was working on some paperwork when the phone rang.

"Audrey Parking speaking," she answered. It was Janet, one of the waitresses at the Grey Gull. She wouldn't give out any details claiming that Mr. Crocker would probably fire her if he found out she had called. She simply requested that Audrey come quickly.

"Who was that?" Nathan asked as he walked into the office, leafing through a folder.

"Janet from the Gull," Audrey said slowly. "She sounded pretty upset." Nathan let out a loud sigh.

"Can we not have one Duke free day?" he asked. Audrey gave him a small smile.

"Hopefully it will be nothing and you two won't have time to kill each other," she joked. She grabbed her jacket and keys and they both headed out.

…

Duke was riffling moodily through the receipts from yesterday. He was so sick of everyone right now, but he refused to hide out in his boat all day. He had a business to run damn it and Nathan fucking Wournos was not going to scare him out of his normal routine.

"What?" he demanded of an innocent customer who had stared at him just a little too long. The woman quickly averted her eyes and left. His whole body hurt. The left side of his face was swollen and an ugly purple color. He had woken up that morning in his own bed to find his shoulder expertly wrapped, but he had ripped it off and redone it on principal, though he'd left the stitches in only on the basis that he was out of thread. He had considered staying home, but he didn't want to give Nathan the satisfaction.

"Duke what happened?" Duke looked up to see Audrey and Nathan walk in. Duke had to give credit where it was due. Nathan looked completely shocked.

"Get the hell out," Duke growled.

"I didn't even say anything," Nathan snapped back.

"Haven't you done enough? Get out," he ground out. He went back to the receipts, but at this point his concentration was shot. He frowned at the slight shake to his hands and decided it was due to anger not fear. He saw Audrey talking quietly to Nathan and then the loner of the police department left. Audrey slowly approached Duke and sat down on the nearest stool.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" she asked gently. She was using her _troubled_ voice and at the moment that really annoyed him.

"I fell," he said shortly, giving her his best 'leave while you still can' smile.

"Into a brick wall?" she asked skeptically.

"What can I say, I'm a clumsy guy," he retorted.

"Not that clumsy." She tried a small smile, but he wasn't in the mood to pretend she was being funny. "Duke, you can trust me," she said putting a hand over his. He pulled away and glared at her.

"The only person I can trust is me. So why don't you just leave," he said sharply. They stared at each other for a few moments before she stood up.

"Alright, but if you need to talk you know how to reach me." She gave him an encouraging smile and then left. Duke watched her leave. Part of him wanted to tell her, warn her maybe, but the other part remembered Nathan's threat. He knew he had no right to be mad at her, but he couldn't help but feel betrayed at her complete faith in the guy. Giving up on the receipts, Duke decided he needed a day off after all.

**Chapter one. Please read and review. Thanks! Updates soon. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Haven or its characters**

**AN: So I just saw the episode "Love Machine" and "Roots" last week and found out a hockey stick apparently isn't such a random object to have lying around. Sorry, there isn't a lot of hockey where I live. Otherwise thanks for the reviews :) and enjoy the next chapter!**

Chapter 2: Claimed by Pain

The next day didn't go as planned either. While he had decided to stay away from the restaurant again, Duke still had other business to attend to. He was walking back to his boat with a crate he had picked up a town over when a woman dressed in a short black dress stepped into his path.

"Duke Crocker, I presume," she said.

"What can I do for you?" he asked, stepping around her so he could put the box down.

"I'm here to pick up Mr. Dover's merchandise," she said.

"Mr. Dover?" Duke repeated, stepping back up onto the dock next to her. "He already picked up his package. You wasted a trip."

"Excuse me?"

"Yeah, he stopped by two or three hours ago and picked it up himself," Duke explained. Although his mood was slightly improved from yesterday, he still didn't have the patients to deal with this woman. "So if you don't mind, I have other things I need to do."

"What did he look like?" she pressed.

"Short, bald wore a green suit," he said, shrugging.

"Really, because this is what he really looks like." She reached into her purse and pulled out a picture of a man who was almost completely opposite than the man who had come by this morning.

"No way," Duke muttered, pulling the picture out of her hands.

"So you just give away important objects to anyone who claims to be your clients?" she asked snidely.

"He had two forms of ID, he knew everything about the transaction we'd set up. There's no way…" Duke looked at the picture again trying to figure out how some random guy could know all of that and provide what had looked like very real identification. Of course there was always the possibility that the woman was lying. Though she obviously knew Dover's name, she could be making everything else up.

"I hate to break it to you, but I think you got played," the woman said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"As far as I'm concerns, this is just some picture of a random guy," Duke said, handing the picture back. "He had more proof than you do and I'm more inclined to believe you're the one who's lying to me."

"This game isn't for children Mr. Crocker. People in my business don't play nice and when you can't deliver there are consequences." She grabbed his chin and turned his face so that he was looking down the dock. Standing a few feet away were two very heavily muscled men who, Duke assumed, were there only for the people who screwed up. "Now do you believe me?"

"Oh come on. Can't you see I've been through enough?" He asked, indicating the still very dark bruises on his face. She let go and looked at him as if she could really care less. He hadn't really expected sympathy, but surprises like that were nice now and again.

"Sweetie if you're really that bad at the business then I suggest you get out while you're still breathing." She signaled to the men to come forward and Duke swallowed hard.

….

"I'm worried about Duke," Audrey said. She had been staring absently at the wall for a good fifteen minutes without responding to anyone who asked her a question.

"Me too," Nathan admitted. "I've seen him pretty banged up before, but never like he was yesterday."

"I think we should go see him," Audrey said, already reaching for her jacket.

"I wouldn't be opposed," Nathan said, standing up.

"Wow, that bad huh?"

"Yeah, that bad." Audrey had never seen him so worried before and she had an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. What had Duke gotten himself into that would worry even Nathan? She led the way to the truck and quickly got in. The sooner they got there the sooner they could figure this out. The ride over was quiet as neither of them felt like expressing their worries and when they got into the restaurant they grabbed the first waitress that passed by.

"Is Duke in today?" Nathan asked.

"No. He called this morning and said he wouldn't be in," the waitress answered. "It's so weird. He left early yesterday too. Right after he talked to you two in fact and those bruises were pretty awful."

"Thanks," Audrey said absently. She glanced up at Nathan and the feeling in her stomach got worse. They arrived at the docks a few minutes later and headed straight for Duke's boat. There was a crate sitting on the deck, which didn't seem right to either of them. They quickly got on board and noticed the door that led down into the galley was wide open.

"Duke?" Audrey called. She pulled out her gun just in case. There were no signs of a struggle, but that didn't make her feel any better. As they were getting closer to the storage room she noticed blood on the walls. There wasn't enough to be question whether they would even find him alive, but it was enough to be worrisome. She pointed this out to Nathan. She saw his jaw clinch and he seemed to grow even more tense.

"Duke!" he shouted, and Audrey jumped a little at the force and sudden volume of the call. There was still no answer. She took the door handle and glanced over at Nathan, who nodded. She quickly shoved open the door. The room was empty, but a door shutting back farther down the hall startled both of them. They swung around and saw Duke with an ice pack pressed against his temple and a whole new arrangement of fresh bruises across his face.

"Isn't breaking and entering illegal?" he asked. He looked slightly dazed, but he seemed to be able to focus enough to walk towards them.

"What happened?" Audrey demanded.

"Are you going to shoot me?" Duke asked, nodding towards the guns that were still raised. Audrey slowly holstered her weapon and took a step forward.

"What happened?" she asked again. Duke seemed to think on the matter for a moment before letting out a long sigh.

"I was set up," he muttered.

"The last time you were set up someone wanted you dead," Nathan reminded him. He had also put away his weapon, but the tension never left his face.

"Yeah well this time they were a little more gracious," Duke said. "Now if you don't mind." He swept his arm towards the door.

"No. Not until you tell us what's going on," Nathan said, shaking his head. Duke took an unsteady step forward and Nathan was surprised he'd missed the smell before. "You'd rather drown yourself in a bottle of wine than talk to us?"

"Just because you're numb doesn't mean the rest of us are," Duke retorted.

"So instead of just asking for help you get drunk," Nathan continued, rolling his eyes.

"I'm not drunk," Duke snapped. He waved his hand towards the storage room again. They both looked in and at first Nathan didn't see anything out of the ordinary, but then he noticed glass on the floor. "Wait." Duke felt around the back of his head and managed to locate a sliver of glass still stuck in his hair. He flicked it at Nathan with an annoyed satisfaction that had the officer clinching his jaw again.

"You look like you're about ready to collapse," Audrey commented. "If you won't let us take you to the hospital then at least try and get some sleep."

"That I can do," Duke said. "Now get out." The officers left Duke standing in the middle of the walkway. He waited for the door to shut and then he started towards his bedroom. What he didn't expect was the front door to open again. "Forget something?" he asked, as Nathan appeared again.

"Who did this to you," Nathan demanded, ignoring Duke's question.

"I'm positive that you don't know him," Duke said, edging around him so he could at least go sit down outside. For some reason it made him nervous to be alone with man inside.

"Try me," Nathan urged, following him outside.

"I don't even know if I know his real name," Duke admitted. He managed to ease himself down into his favorite chair. "He goes by Dover."

"Guiles Dover?" Nathan asked.

"How the hell do you know Guiles Dover?" Duke asked.

"Guy's a piss poor excuse of a crook. He cares more about beating up his clients than getting his merchandise. He has a system." Nathan looked thoughtful as he jumped back onto the dock and began walking swiftly away.

"He has a system," Duke muttered under his breath. If that didn't sum up half the guys he knew then he really didn't know what he was doing. Deciding his headache, to put it mildly, needed more than an ice pack, Duke went back inside and locked his door.

….

As night fell over Haven, Duke was passed out on his bed and had been for the past six hours. In retrospect he probably should have gone to the doctor to make sure he didn't have a concussion, but he hadn't had the energy that afternoon. He was jerked awake when there was a thud coming from outside. Groaning into his pillow he got up and stumbled to where he kept a shotgun hidden in his closet. Though the implications of somebody being on his boat hadn't quite reached him through his traumatized exhausted head, he still had enough wits about him to grab any protection he could get.

He slowly approached the door that led outside, waking up more and more the farther he got. By the time he reached the door he was fully awake and enough adrenaline was pumping to allow him to push through the headache. He pressed his ear against the door to try and hear better. For a moment there was nothing, but then someone pounded on the door hard enough to send the sound echoing through his throbbing head.

"Damn it," he groaned, putting a hand to his temples. He felt hung over and wished that he were because that would have at least accounted for a much more enjoyable evening than he'd had.

"Duke." Nathan's voice boomed through the door and Duke squeezed his eyes closed.

"Shut up!" he shouted back, probably much louder than it needed to be, but he wanted someone else to know what he was going through. He pushed the door open hoping that Nathan would be close enough to get smacked with it. He wasn't. "You do realize what time it is don't you?"

"It's 10:30," Nathan said, with a small amused smirk. "I didn't think you had a bedtime." For a moment all Duke could do was stare at him. He was almost positive that the clock in his bedroom had read 2:30am, but based on the knowledge that he probably wouldn't be able to keep his thoughts together long enough to form a coherent argument, he ignored the statement.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"I've got something for you," Nathan said, stepping out of the doorway.

"It couldn't wait until morning?" Duke asked tiredly.

"No. Not this." Nathan backed up farther and it was then that Duke noticed a lump of something on the deck. He glanced up at Nathan and then shuffled forward a few steps. He was about to ask what exactly it was when it moved. Upon closer, and possibly clearer, inspection Duke saw it was human shaped.

"Who the hell is that?" he demanded, taking an automatic step backwards. "Are you trying to set me up?" He didn't know why he'd said that. Maybe with the Dover incident he was getting a little paranoid, but none the less he'd asked the most straight and narrow cop if he was trying to set him up. Nathan laughed quietly and yanked the tarp off the body. Duke couldn't help but lean forward a little to get a closer look. "That's the guy who picked up Dover's stuff."

"That's because he is Dover," Nathan said. When it was clear Duke had no idea what he was talking about he continued. "Dover has more fun beating up his employees than smuggling illegal substances throughout the country. He approaches the dealer, scopes them out and if he thinks it would be funny sends his body guards after them. I guess you looked naïve enough to send someone after you." Duke's jaw clinched at the nerve of the guy.

"How do you know all this?" Duke asked. "Why did you bring him here?"

"Well, I think Dover here saw the same thing in you that I did," Nathan said, kicking Dover hard enough to elicit a muffled grunt. Duke tensed at the words.

"What do you mean?" he asked slowly. His grip tightened on his shotgun as Nathan slowly began walking towards him.

"You're an easy target," Nathan answered, unphased by the gun. "You put on this macho act, but inside you just want attention. It all started with your dad and then when…I turned on you, you turned towards bullying and later crime."

"So now you're giving me a psych lesson? What the hell is this?" Duke continued to back away as Nathan advanced.

"Well I thought since Mr. Dover here clearly doesn't know what he's doing, I'd give him a free lesson as to how this is supposed to be done," Nathan said. In a move that seemed too fast and too strong for a human, Nathan suddenly shoved Duke hard enough into the wall for him to drop the shotgun. "Are you paying attention over there?" Nathan asked, glancing over his shoulder. Using the distraction, Duke tried to take a swing, but Nathan turned and caught his wrist at the last second. He smirked and then, grabbing the front of Duke's shirt in his free hand, swung him around and threw him across the deck and into a stack of crates.

Winded and dazed from the impact, Duke wasn't at all prepared when Nathan hauled him up again and tossed him back towards the door. He struggled to his hands and knees and tried to at least get to the door hoping it would slow Nathan down, but Nathan grabbed the back of his jacket and threw him away from the door.

"Are you just going to keep throwing me around like a damn cat with yarn?" he asked, trying to get to his feet. Nathan didn't answer. Instead he tangled his hand in Duke's hair and dragged him to where Dover was laying. He yanked Duke's head back, looking somewhat pleased by the small gasp of pain, and bent down so Dover could see him.

"I can appreciate your line of work Guiles, but this one is mine. Do you understand me?" Dover nodded vigorously. "Good." Nathan shoved Duke off to the side and then grabbed the rope tied around Dover's upper body and dragged him towards the edge of the boat. Duke had started to get up to make an escape when he saw Nathan lift Dover up and over the side of the boat and into the water.

"Hey!" He ran over to the edge, but aside from the residing ripples from Dover's body there was no movement.

"Don't worry, he's fine," Nathan said, pointing towards the shore. Duke looked over and saw Dover, completely free of the ropes pulling himself up onto a dock farther down and then running into town.

"How…"

"Let me look at you." Nathan grabbed his chin, but Duke pulled away.

"Don't touch…" He found himself being thrown hard against the wall of the cabin with Nathan's arms on either side of his head, keeping him in place.

"Let me look at you," Nathan repeated his voice low and dangerous. He grabbed Duke's chin again and turned his head from side to side to get the best look he could in the dim harbor lights.

"It wasn't him," Duke said quietly. "He wasn't the one who did this."

"No," Nathan agreed. "Guiles prefers to watch others do his dirty work." Duke tried to keep as still as possible. He didn't want to provoke the obviously deranged officer any more than necessary. Nathan let out a long sigh and rested his forehead against Duke's. "Why did you let him do this to you?"

"Why did I _let_ him?" Duke pulled his head away, but that only seemed to encourage Nathan bury his face in the crook of his neck. Duke tried to squirm away, but Nathan followed his every move.

"Nath…"

"Shh," Nathan hushed him, and gently turned his face away before pressing his cheek against Duke's neck. "Just keep still." Duke did just that, but this was getting way to weird for him. He saw a couple walking somewhat towards them and opened his mouth to maybe get some help, but Nathan suddenly pulled away and yanked his face forward. "Don't." Duke considered denying that he was about to do anything, but Nathan already seemed to know.

"Just tell me what's going on," he said instead.

"It's just a little insurance. Guys like Guiles won't be bothering you any more now," Nathan said, still holding Duke's face. "I won't lose what's rightfully mine."

"What's rightfully yours?" Duke repeated defensively.

"Relax, I don't mean you, I mean your pain," Nathan clarified.

"Great, because that makes it better somehow," Duke retorted.

"Go to sleep. You won't have any more problems." He let Duke go and took a couple steps back. Duke rubbed his jaw, only now realizing how hard Nathan's fingers had been digging into his flesh. He watched Nathan get off the boat and slowly walk out of sight. He stood on the deck long enough to start to wonder if it had all been a dream. His head ached badly enough that he could even dismiss some of the new aches and pains as residual effects from the encounter that afternoon. The events that had unfolded had just been too bizarre to count as reality or at least that's what he told himself as he went inside and went back to bed.

**Chapter 3 up soon. Please Read and review. Thanks for the reviews for the last chapter. :) **

**Rafocy  
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	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Thanks for letting me know about the last chapter ;). I didn't realize I had uploaded the second chapter twice. Here's the real chapter 3!  
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**Disclaimer: I do not own Haven or its characters**

**AN: Only thing is Nathan gets a little possessive, could be seen as slash. **

Chapter 3: Territorial Dispute

Duke swallowed hard as he sat on the edge of his bed the next morning. He had awoken in a cold sweat only to find that he'd slept through his alarm and several anxious calls from Audrey and a couple of the employees at the Gull. What really bothered him was the area on his neck that Nathan had rubbed his face all over. He reached up and tentatively touched the spot. It didn't hurt really, but it felt…different. He hadn't convinced himself to look in a mirror in fear that he would have some grotesque mark on his skin that he wouldn't be able to cover up or explain away.

After a few more minutes of mental preparation, he finally got off the bed and headed to the bathroom. Once there he carefully kept his gaze averted, pretending to be busy sorting through the few things he had on the sink.

"Oh come on, suck it up," he chastised himself out loud. "It can't be that bad." Taking a long calming breath he brought his gaze slowly up to the mirror. The area was slightly red, but otherwise looked normal. His face on the other hand was almost entirely purple and he didn't even want to think about the rest of his body.

Now that his physical appearance was settled, he had time to figure out what was wrong with Nathan. He was already troubled. Was it not enough that the guy was physically and emotionally, in Duke's opinion, unable to feel anything? The thought almost made Duke feel sorry for him. Almost. Haven just wouldn't leave the man alone. Realizing he wasn't going to get any answers just sitting there, Duke decided it was time he visited Nathan for a change.

….

Finding Nathan proved to be much more difficult than he'd planned. He wasn't at the police station, checking up on the Rev, or coming up with a reasonable story for the Teague brothers. In fact it took him most of the morning to even find someone who'd seen him.

"Duke, you look just awful dear," Patsy Morrow greeted him. She owned one of the local bookstores, which Duke had entered as a last resort. The woman drove him insane, but if she was the only person in the whole damn town who'd seen Nathan, then he wasn't going to pass her up just because she annoyed him.

"Thanks Patsy, have you seen Nathan around?" he asked.

"Are you going to report that?" Patsy asked, pointing unabashedly at his face. She was in her late seventies and frankly Duke couldn't remember a time when the woman wasn't crazy as hell.

"Don't worry about it, have you seen him?" he repeated.

"Sure. He passed by about an hour ago with Audrey. They looked like they were in a hurry," Patsy said, nodding. "You know, you really should be more careful. A man of your age should be worrying about your health right now. My Hector was just like you. He did all sorts of things and it ended up killing him in the end. Well…I guess if you really get down to it, it was the cancer that killed him, but I still think it was from too much excitement."

"Thanks, Patsy." Duke hurried out of the store. Now that he was pointed in the right direction, it didn't take long for him to find Nathan and Audrey walking casually down the street. If Patsy thought they were in some kind of hurry they were either trying to quickly pass her store or she needed her eyes checked again. Audrey happened to turn and waved to him as he was rapidly gaining on them.

"You're looking a little better today," she said, giving him a smile laced with worry.

"Yeah, Nathan can I talk to you for a moment?" Duke asked. He felt bad for dodging Audrey, but he needed answers.

"Um, sure I guess," Nathan nodded. Duke tried to ignore the hurt look that flashed over Audrey's face as he and Nathan walked a little ways farther and slipped in between a couple buildings.

"What was the deal last night and don't say payback because I didn't do anything to deserve this," Duke hissed.

"If you're referring to me thinking you were drunk then I think it's warranted."

"I'm talking about when you came back," Duke corrected.

"I…didn't come back," Nathan said slowly.

"Fine. You don't want to tell me fine, but I'm warning you, if you step foot on my boat without Audrey or someone else I will shoot you." Duke stalked out of the alley, pushed passed Audrey, who was waiting at the entrance, and headed back down the street. After all the time he'd spent looking this seemed somewhat anticlimactic, but just being alone with the man had made him nervous. He swore at his fear. Of all the people he'd done business with he'd never been as afraid as he was now.

He made it half way down the street before stopping and turning back around. Audrey and Nathan were still standing in front of the alley talking. He could see the concern on their faces and he honestly didn't know how Nathan hid it so well. He saw Nathan shrug and glance down at him, but when he noticed Duke watching he seemed to stiffen. Furious and frustrated, Duke stormed back to them.

"Alright that's it. I want answers and I want them now. Don't pretend like you don't know what I'm talking about," Duke snapped, as he approached them. Nathan looked helplessly towards Audrey. "What? Are you too afraid to say it in front of her?" Duke asked sharply, gesturing wildly toward Audrey. "Because I think she has a right to know. I think she should know everything about her partner and his fetish for beating the crap out of people." Duke's voice had been steadily rising and Nathan actually took a step backwards from the force of the words.

"Wait a second, are you saying Nathan did this?" Audrey asked, her voice rising slightly in surprise.

"Tell her," Duke ordered, loud and sharp enough that Nathan took another step back.

"You're obviously confused," Nathan said hesitantly.

"Confused?" People across the street were beginning to stop and stare as Duke's voice had risen well above the noise of the traffic and pedestrians. "Do you think I'm stupid? I'm not going to sit back and take this shit from you Nathan. Explain to me what the hell you were thinking last night and what _this _is?" He jabbed at the red spot on his neck.

"Duke, I think maybe you need to calm down," Audrey said, lightly grabbing his arm.

"No! Damn it, Audrey, he's the one who's been doing this to me!" Duke protested, yanking his arm out of her grip. "Don't you understand?"

"That's impossible. I was with him all day yesterday. He wouldn't have been able to do this to you," Audrey tried to reason with him.

"Yesterday wasn't him, but the first time was and last night he came back. He had the guy who set me up and he threw him overboard," Duke said exasperated. They stared at him as if he'd suddenly grown a second head. Now Duke was aware of everyone staring at them and he had the distinct feeling that they all thought _he_ was the crazy one.

"Maybe you should go home," Nathan suggested tonelessly. It had taken years for Duke to figure out the different levels of monotone that Nathan possessed and this one seemed to suggest he was scared out of his wits, but was not willing to admit it.

"That's all you have to say to me?" Duke said sharply. His voice had lowered considerably, but now seemed more dangerous. Nathan shot another glance towards Audrey. "What do you keep looking to her for? She can't answer for you Nathan," Duke growled. Nathan opened his mouth as if to say something, but closed it again.

"Mr. Crocker?" Duke turned when someone tapped his shoulder and saw Guiles Dover standing there with a patient smile.

"Dover?" he asked, bewildered. "But…Nathan…I…he…" Duke seemed at a loss for words as Nathan refused to react and Dover pretended he hadn't been thrown overboard bound and gagged only twelve hours earlier.

"It's all right Mr. Crocker, I'm going to take you back now," Dover said patiently.

"Back?" Duke choked. While 'back' implied absolutely nothing to him it still had an ominous sound to it.

"Yes sir. Back," Dover gave him a conspirator's wink then turned to Nathan and Audrey. "I'm sorry about him he sort of…escaped."

"Escaped from where?" Audrey asked, stepping forward almost defensively.

"I'm treating Mr. Crocker for his wounds. I'm Dr. Guiles Dover and I feel I must explain his behavior this afternoon. See, he's on a large amount of pain medications, which accounts for the aggression and paranoia. I had instructed one of my nurses to keep an eye on him, but apparently she found the task of watching him sleep too boring," Dover explained with the ease of a man who had lied one too many times in his life.

"So, you work at the hospital?" Audrey asked skeptically.

"I've never seen you around," Nathan added his own suspicion. Duke supposed Nathan really did want to keep his extracurricular activities a secret from Audrey if he was trying so hard to play dumb.

"I'm a family physician," Dover explained, though his voice seemed to be losing its polite tone. "I've worked with the Crockers for years, haven't I Duke?" Dover looked up to him expectantly, but Duke couldn't quite wipe the clueless expression off his face before Dover grabbed his elbow and yanked him a few feet away. "If you want answers you will have to play along," Dover hissed. "I can't pull this off all on my own and you're obviously getting nowhere with _him_." Duke took another second to process this and glanced back once at Nathan before understanding what he meant.

"You'll tell me everything?" he asked. Dover gave him a sharp nod. Duke straightened up and walked over to Audrey and Nathan.

"I apologize for my behavior. I wasn't in my right mind."

"If you don't mind, I'll be taking Mr. Crocker home now," Dover chimed in, taking an unnecessarily tight hold on Duke's elbow. "I assure you he'll be right as rain in a few days. Now, come along Duke, you must go back to bed."

"Audrey…" Duke shot a glance at Nathan and then looked back at her. "Watch out for yourself." Audrey nodded halfheartedly as she seemed to be keeping a close eye on Dover out of the corner of her eye.

"You too," she said earnestly. "I'll stop by later tonight to check up on you." Duke nodded and followed Dover back down the streets and towards the docks.

…..

Once out of Nathan and Audrey's line of sight, Dover took a sharp right and led Duke to a beat up Ford Taurus, claiming that the boat wasn't private enough. His instincts were telling him not to get into the car, but his curiosity to know what the hell was going overrode his cautious side.

Twenty minutes later they arrived at an old abandoned mill just outside of the city limits. Duke hesitated before getting out of the car. Why would they need to come all the way out here in order for Dover to explain himself? How was the man alive anyway when he had gone into the water tied up like he had been? It was this thought that made Duke realize he'd made a mistake. Who knew what the man was capable and Duke had followed him like a lost pup.

_Damn it_. He cursed himself. Dover had already gotten out of the car and was holding the door open to the mill expectantly. Now his only chance of escaping the trap, if it was one, was to keep Dover thinking he didn't know what was going on. He slowly got out of the car and walked over to Dover as calmly and naturally as possible.

"Were you admiring the view?" Dover asked, with an eyebrow raised.

"What's to admire?" Duke asked, stepping past Dover and walking into the darkened building. The door being held open was virtually the only light source and when Dover let the door click shut, Duke was plunged into darkness. He froze, willing his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but he was completely blind. He started forward again, hoping that Dover was as blind as he was. He'd only gone a couple of feet, however, when someone grabbed him from behind. A long calloused hand was covering his mouth and before he really had a chance to react a dim light flickered on, illuminating some of the building.

He realized that he had been pulled into a short hallway and Dover was nowhere in sight. Duke knew that whoever had grabbed him was too tall to be Dover so he kept still; hoping whoever it was wanted to help.

"Duke?" Dover called out. "Don't you want to learn the truth?"

"Can I trust you not to say anything." The whisper was right at Duke's ear and he had to suppress a shiver at the hot breath sliding down his neck. He had recognized Nathan's voice immediately and although he trusted him about as much as he trusted Dover, he gave one short nod. Nathan removed his hand from Duke's mouth, but his left arm remained looped around Duke's waist. He was about to nonverbally protest this position when a gun slowly appeared around the corner about six inches from his face.

"Come on Crocker. Come out and face your mortality like a man," Dover shouted. Dover's face appeared a few moments later and Nathan, reaching around Duke, punched him hard enough to send him flying into the opposite wall. The gun went skidding across the floor as Dover slid down to the ground.

"I could have done that," Duke snapped.

"Of course you could have," Nathan said, smirking as he rested his chin on Duke's shoulder.

"I should have known you'd be here," Dover sneered as he struggled to his feet. Duke saw Nathan's gun appear off to his left and frowned when he realized it wasn't the standard issue Haven PD handgun.

"Didn't I tell you to stay away?" Nathan asked his tone calm and pointed.

"You know how I am with direct orders," Dover huffed.

"And you know how territorial I am," Nathan returned.

"Speaking of which, would you mind letting me go?" Duke asked as authoritatively as he could given the situation.

"Only if you promise to get right in the car," Nathan said. Duke suppressed a shiver at the slightly seductive tone.

"Don't you trust me?" he asked, trying to mimic Nathan's tone. He didn't know what Nathan was playing at, but if it got him out of here then he was willing to play along. He felt Nathan's face press against his neck for a second and then the arm disappeared and Nathan moved so that he was standing between Dover and Duke while leaving the exit open.

Once Duke was outside he didn't go for the car, but he did pause to take notice that Nathan's Bronco was nowhere in sight. He glanced towards the door to make sure that no one was coming after him and then quickly started up the road and away from the mill. He wasn't above hitchhiking back to Haven if it came down to that, but he had a feeling he wouldn't be on the road long enough. In fact he had just barely lost sight of the mill when Nathan pulled up beside him in a tan Honda Accord, which had been the only other car in the lot.

"I thought I told you to go to the car," Nathan said as he slowed the car to creep alongside Duke, who refused to stop walking.

"I didn't see _your_ car," Duke pointed out.

"I'm borrowing this one," Nathan said, glancing down at the dash of the car.

"Without the keys," Duke asked, nodding towards the ignition. He didn't know Nathan was capable of hot wiring a car either for ethical reasons or a lack of knowledge to do so.

"I was in a hurry," Nathan said, with a small smirk. "Would you like a ride?"

"Not really," Duke answered, refusing to divert his eyes from the horizon.

"Suit yourself," Nathan said, and then drove off without another word. Duke stopped in his tracks completely taken off guard. He would have been less surprised if Nathan had gotten out and shoved him in the trunk. He looked up and down the street, but didn't see a single car in either direction. Sighing he began the long trek back to town.

**Chapter 4 up soon. Thanks for reviewing. :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Haven or its characters.**

Chapter 4: The Final Round

Making his way back into town had left Duke's body even more sore and he felt on the verge of collapse, which he promptly did once he'd gotten back on his boat. The night passed in relative silence and he awoke the next morning to absolutely nothing, which was a welcome relief.

A few days passed days since the initial attack and Duke had begun to believe that the worst was over. His face was now the yellow green of healing. His shoulder, with the makeshift stitches was holding and the wound was scabbing over. He had flat out refused to go to a doctor. He didn't want to have to explain that his high school tormentee and sometimes friend beat the ever loving shit out of him. Twice.

No, Duke was perfectly content to just let his body heal on its own. He was enjoying a good night's sleep after his fourth day of peace when someone laid a hand on his shoulder. He was awake instantly and tried to inconspicuously slip his hand under his pillow where his gun was hidden.

"Duke?" He recognized the voice, but he wasn't about to let his guard down. His fingers closed around the gun. He quickly rolled out of bed and swung his gun around towards her. "Whoa, take it easy, it's just me," Audrey said, putting her hands up.

"How did you get in here?" he demanded, refusing to put his gun down.

"The door was open," she said slowly. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay." Duke hesitated for a moment longer before slowly lowering his gun. "Can you please tell me what's going on?" she asked.

"No," he said shortly. "It's over now. It's nothing for you to worry about." Audrey sighed, but eventually stood up from where she had been sitting on the bed. She left without another word. Duke followed a few minutes later and checked the lock on the door. He could have sworn he'd locked it, but it didn't seem to be broken. He relocked the door, but as he was getting ready to go back to bed something slammed into his back and pinned him to the door.

"Miss me?"

"Nathan," he spat. He tried to push back, but Nathan held strong.

"I was thinking about that first time and it just wasn't satisfying enough," Nathan answered. Duke couldn't help but think that something was different. Previously Nathan had attacked with a single minded purpose, but this time he seemed almost excited.

"What's with the attitude adjustment?" he asked, trying to keep his own devil may care attitude.

"You're a challenge," Nathan answered. "Last time I didn't get what I wanted, but I will, even if I have to keep coming back." He grabbed the back of Duke's shirt and flung him back towards the bedroom.

"You forgot something," Duke said as he heard the bedroom door shut.

"What's that?" Nathan asked coolly.

"I'm not tied up." In a move that he hoped would be sudden; he whirled around and slammed his fist into Nathan's face. Although he knew Nathan wouldn't be able to feel it, he knew it would at least catch him off guard. It had the desired effect as Nathan fell to the ground and Duke continued his assault with a multitude of kicks to his face and torso. He wasn't expecting Nathan to grab his leg and he promptly fell backwards as Nathan gave a sharp yank. His head smacked into the bedside table hard enough for his vision to blur. Nathan grabbed his shirt and spun him around towards the bed and shoved him forward. He twisted Duke's left arm behind his back and got a pained yelp in return.

"As much as I would love to listen to you scream we can't have the neighbors come running," Nathan said. Duke was on his knees with his upper body bent over the bed. Nathan pressed down against him and used his body weight to keep the other man pinned to the bed while he produced a piece of cloth and a bandana from his jacket pocket. He forced the cloth into Duke's mouth and then tied the bandana around his head to keep him from spitting it back out. Once the gag was in place Nathan seemed to relax a little. He put his right hand over Duke's and interlaced their fingers. Duke's left arm was still twisted behind his back, pinned between their bodies. Nathan chuckled and ran his left hand through the dark wavy hair.

"I guess it's time to get started huh?" He grabbed Duke's free wrist with his left hand and then began slowly pulling his index finger back. Realizing what he was trying to do, Duke tried to pull out of his grasp, but Nathan held firm and continued to pull. There was an audible crack and Duke let out a choked scream around the gag. A single tear dripped down his cheek from the pain. "There it is," Nathan whispered. Releasing the broken finger, Nathan grabbed Duke's chained turned his face towards him. He then ran his tongue along the tear trail and he let out a contented sigh.

"Physical pain tears taste the best," he said. "Sad tears are too bitter and personally, I find humiliation tears to be too sweet. Pain is just the right combination of salty and sweet." Duke knew for sure then that there was definitely something off. Maybe it was the troubles. That didn't make this forgivable, but he could at least understand. As he finished that thought, Nathan went in for the next finger and snapped it as well. This time between the second break and all the other aches and pains the tears flowed freely and wouldn't stop. "There we go," Nathan praised.

He wrapped an arm around Duke's waist and pulled them both away from the bed until his back was up against the wall and Duke was up against him. They sat on the floor for a good ten or fifteen minutes with Duke sobbing and Nathan occasionally licking the tears off his face or swiping them off with his finger and then sucking the tears off that way, all the while making oddly contented noises deep in his throat.

As Duke finally got a hold of himself he became aware of a couple different things. One, Nathan was rubbing his arm in a soothing manor and two he was slowly rocking them side to side. Now that he could see and think clearly again, Duke tried to squirm out of Nathan's grip. "We should get those set," Nathan commented. He pulled the gag off and Duke promptly leaned over and vomited right next to Nathan's leg. It felt weak and shameful, but between the shock and the pain he hadn't been able to help it.

"Let it all out," Nathan said soothingly, running his hand up and down Duke's back. Duke wanted nothing more than to punch him in the face, but he didn't want to risk injuring himself farther. Plus he'd already found out what happened if he tried to fight back. After another moment of this, Nathan finally helped him to his feet and led him to the door. Duke slowly began to think up ways to escape.

Once outside it should be a little easier and if he could make a little noise in the process and bring some people running that would be helpful as well. The cool night air helped soothe the headache that was building at Duke's temples. When they were far enough away form he boat that Nathan wouldn't be able to shove him back in, Duke yanked his arm out of his grip and started running.

Nathan charged after him without a second's hesitation. It was almost as if he'd been anticipating an escape. It only took him few moments to catch up and yank Duke's arm back so hard and so fast that it almost pulled the joint form the socket. Jerked by the sudden movement, Duke's own momentum sent him crashing back into Nathan's solid form. Nathan's arm wrapped around his lower back and in the dark they probably just looked like an average couple taking a midnight stroll.

"You can't get away from me," Nathan said with a smirk.

"Watch me," Duke hissed. "Help!" He struggle desperately to get out of Nathan's grasp while making as much noise as possible. He did notice that when he landed a particularly hard blow to Nathan's jaw there was a pained hiss. "You can feel." It came out as an accusation, but in reality it only meant one thing.

"Duke?" There was a split second of stillness as Audrey's voice sounded over their scuffle.

"Audrey!" Before he could shout a warning or otherwise, Duke found himself being propelled off the dock and into the harbor. Duke broke the surface of the water for a brief second before Nathan, or whoever it was, yanked him back down. He heard or maybe rather felt something else jump into the water and the person holding him under lost its grip. Duke again broke through the water, gasping for air. Something latched onto his ankle and tried to yank him down again. He was just barely able to keep his head above water when the pressure left. The next thing he knew Nathan had him under the arms and was steering him towards the ladder on the dock.

"Audrey," Nathan shouted.

"Nathan? What are you doing here?" Audrey asked, appearing over the edge of the dock.

"Same thing you are. Help me get him up," Nathan responded. Between the two of them they managed to drag a spluttering, coughing Duke up onto the dock.

"What happened?" Audrey asked Nathan as Duke was incapable of answering at the moment.

"I don't know," Nathan said, shrugging. "It looked like someone pulled him in, but no human I know can hold their breath that long. Are you okay?" Nathan laid a hand on Duke's shoulder, but pulled it away when Duke gave him a death glare. Now that he'd finally reestablished his breathing he was pissed.

"Trying to look like a hero?" Duke snapped.

"What are you talking about?" Nathan asked flatly.

"You planned all of this and you could have gotten us both killed," Duke retorted. He started to get up, but accidently leaned on his two broken fingers. He yelped out in pain and quickly cradled his hand to his chest, mindful of the broken appendages.

"We need to get you to a hospital," Nathan said, watching Duke carefully.

"I'm not going anywhere with you," Duke spat. Nathan rolled his eyes and turned to Audrey.

"I'll go get the car started," he said, then got up and headed towards shore. More out of spite than anything else, Duke picked up a particularly large shell and chucked it at Nathan's back. It hit him square between the shoulder blades, but Nathan didn't even flinch.

"Was that really necessary?" Audrey asked as she helped Duke to his feet.

"Wait a second, now he can't feel again?" Duke glanced over into the water, but nothing was moving. He looked back at Audrey and noticed she was completely dry. "You're not wet."

"Why would I be?" she asked, looking thoroughly confused.

"I thought you jumped in after me," Duke paused as he realized she had helped him out which meant his instincts had been right. The Nathan that kept attacking him was not the same Nathan that had just helped him out. Maybe then the Nathan he'd tried to interrogate really hadn't come back that night with Guiles bound and gagged.

"Are you okay? Did you hit your head when you went in?"

"I'm fine," Duke said absently. He glanced out over the edge again, but the waters were still.

"Come on let's get out of here," Audrey suggested. Duke nodded and they made their way to Nathan's truck. The ride was quiet with Duke staring at Nathan through the rearview mirror and Nathan occasionally meeting his gaze. After several minutes of silence, Nathan finally spoke up.

"So what happened out there?" he asked. Duke's eyes narrowed automatically, though he somewhat suspected that this particular Nathan wasn't the one that had tried to drown him.

"Why were you two hanging around the dock in the middle of the night?" he countered.

"Why is it so hard to believe we were worried?" Nathan asked.

"Because you never cared before when you saw me with bruises," Duke answered.

"You're right. When you came into class in third grade with a bruise, I didn't care, but when you walk into your restaurant looking like you tried to fight a cinder block, yeah I'm going to worry." Nathan stared at him hard in the rearview mirror. Duke suddenly had a thought.

"Can you kiss a woman when you can't feel anything?" Duke asked.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Nathan demanded.

"My…attacker can't feel anything either," Duke explained.

"And he kissed you?" Nathan raised an eyebrow.

"He…" Duke hesitated, but was unable to come up with a better explanation as to why he would ask. "Yes."

"Why?" Audrey asked.

"Do I look like I know?" Duke scoffed. "So can you?"

"Yes," Nathan sighed.

"How? Do your eyes have to be open or is it a hit and miss kind of thing?"

"At first…I have to look. Then once I get a feel for her…"

"So you can't just do it," Duke interrupted. "Even if you've known this person your whole life and you know his face really well." Nathan took a second to glare at Duke heatedly before turning back to the road.

"No. Not even if I've known _her_ forever," Nathan admitted grudgingly. Duke sat back and thought back to that first night. Nathan had charged full on into that first kiss. His eyes had been closed and he definitely hadn't missed.

He turned to look out the window to signify he was done talking. No one pressed him and he was glad for that. It gave him time to think. So unless Nathan was having this weird bipolar thing going on it couldn't be him. Then there was a second person who'd jumped into the harbor. It wasn't Audrey so that would leave the second Nathan or the first Nathan really. Duke figured it was safe to say the violent Nathan was second.

By the time they reached the hospital, Duke had composed himself enough to appear stony and distant again. Of course the doctor asked questions, which Duke brushed off with a snide comment or a pointed glare.

"I fell," Duke answered for the third time as Dr. Howard was finishing up the bandage on his fingers.

"Would it kill you to just tell me the truth for once?" Howard asked, taking a step back once he was done.

"Would you rather I tell you a sea monster yanked me into the harbor by these two fingers?" Duke asked, raising his hand for emphasis.

"I would rather hear you say you were screwing around with a couple of no good thugs and got in over your head," Howard said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Oh now Doc leave my love life out of this," Duke said sarcastically.

"Duke I've been treating you for a long time. Haven't I done enough to hear the truth for once?" Howard asked.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Duke responded.

"I just told you what I believe," Howard pointed out.

"Well that's not what happened."

"Fine. I'll go get your pain medications."

"Thank you." Howard turned and left the room and as Audrey opened her mouth Duke held up his hand. "No."

"I'm going to get some coffee," Nathan said, then turned and left. A few seconds later he came back in and shut the door.

"I thought you were getting coffee," Duke said watching him carefully.

"Machine's broken," Nathan responded.

"The machine's downstairs. There's no way you had time to go down there already," Duke pointed out.

"Alright so I changed my mind. Is that a problem?" This time even Audrey noticed a difference and she gave him a side long glance.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Fine, why?" Nathan asked.

"You're not Nathan," Duke said slowly.

"And who else would I be?" he asked shortly.

"Let's settle this now. Audrey, please call Nathan," Duke said, looking at her. She hesitated for a second and then pulled out her phone and dialed. Nathan pulled out his phone, which was obviously water damaged.

"It went into the harbor with me. I don't think it's going to work," he said snidely. Duke remembered clearly seeing Nathan's phone sitting on the dash when they'd gotten into the car. It had been completely dry and had obviously never been in the water.

"Put it on speaker phone," Duke told Audrey, ignoring Nathan completely. She did as he said and the sound of the phone ringing on the other end filled the small room. For a moment, Duke worried that his theory might have been off, but then the ringing stopped.

"Hello?" Nathan's voice came over the speakers. Duke turned smugly to Nathan number two.

"Nathan would you come up to the room quickly?" Duke said, keeping his voice as carefree as possible. Number two took the phone from Audrey and promptly crushed it in one hand. As Audrey reached for her gun Two hit her hard enough to send her flying across the room.

"If you try to escape or call for help he dies," Two threatened. As Duke had started to get up to help Audrey, Two had pointed her gun at him. Now he pulled back the hammer just to prove how serious he was.

"You won't kill me," Duke said confidently.

"Oh and why's that?" Two asked, turning his attention to Duke.

"Don't you remember that first night? Or tonight even? Did you get what you want? Did you really?" Duke asked slowly getting up from the hospital table. Two grinned.

"I did, but who's to say that I can't have more?" he said.

"Fine then let her go and I'll give you what you need," Duke said straight faced.

"I don't think you know what I want," Two said, taking a step forward.

"Really?" Duke ran a finger down his cheek. "I've never heard someone put a flavor to tears before." Two smirked again.

"Are you too much of a man to cry in front of people?" Two taunted. "Well I hate to break it to you, but I love a captive audience." Before Duke could react, Two moved swiftly forward and grabbed Duke's uninjured hand before crushing his wrist.

"Shit!" Duke stumbled backwards, his face quickly becoming damp with silent tears. Two grabbed Duke's shirt and yanked him closer. He practically rubbed his nose against Duke's cheek and moaned softly.

"If only I hadn't had so much earlier. These smell even better than the last," he said loud enough so Audrey could hear. There was a hard knock on the door and the real Nathan's voice came through.

"Audrey? Duke? What's going on?" As Two turned to look at the door, Duke threw himself forward and managed to knock the gun out of his hand and towards Audrey. Two shoved him hard enough to knock him over the bed and onto the floor on the other side. It then whirled towards Audrey and in the blink of an eye turned into her. The change was complete, even down to the clothes.

"You couldn't shoot me could you?" Fake Audrey asked, slowly walking forward.

"Don't move," Audrey ordered. Her hands didn't waver as she leveled the gun at Two's chest.

"What about me then?" The creature turned into Duke. "You wouldn't hurt me would you? I'm hurting already. Broken fingers," he held up his bandaged fingers. "Bruised, beaten. Do you want to see?" He lifted up his shirt, with his right hand as his left hand was being held awkwardly from the shattered wrist, and exposed the bruises that littered the real Duke's torso. "And now I'm being choked to death."

He pulled the collar of his shirt away from his neck and dark purple finger like bruises began appearing on the skin. A second later Audrey's attention was snapped over to the corner where Duke was suddenly gasping for breath and struggling with an invisible force around his neck. The knocking on the door got louder and Dr. Howard's voice was added to the outside noise.

"Come on Audrey. No one wants to die here," Two said soothingly. "Let me go and I promise, I'll leave Duke alone. I won't look like anyone else, hell I'll even leave Haven. This doesn't need to end bloody." Audrey flinched as he gently touched her hair. "What do you say?"

"I'll let you go if…if you'll turn into someone for me. Someone I want to see again," Audrey said quietly. It hadn't escaped her notice that Duke was struggling less and less the longer this was drawn out.

"Tell me who," Two asked.

"My mother," Audrey answered. Two chuckled and shook his head.

"I can only transform into people you've seen and you've never seen her." He explained as if talking to a small child.

"Dr. Carr then. I want to see her face again," Audrey said. She chanced a look at Duke and saw he wasn't moving at all.

"Now that I can do." Two took a step back and transformed into Dr. Carr. Duke started coughing as the air was finally let into his lungs again. Two's grin instantly faded. "Wait…" As he started to change again, Audrey fired twice. Two fell hard to the floor, jerked once and then was still. The door flew open, now clear of Two's influence, and Nathan and Dr. Howard both burst into the room. Audrey quickly went to Duke's side and knelt down beside him.

"Are you okay?" she asked. He nodded as words were still a little beyond him at the moment.

"What happened in here?" Nathan asked, looking between Audrey and Duke to Dr. Carr's body on the floor.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Audrey said. Duke let out a pained chuckle beside her.

…

"So you had to wait until he changed forms before you could kill it?" Nathan asked. They were all sitting at a table at the Grey Gull two days later. He reached over to help Duke who was struggling to pick up his beer bottle between his bandaged left wrist and the splinted fingers on his right hand.

"I've got it," he snapped. Nathan raised his hands in surrender. Duke finally managed to get the bottle to his lips despite almost dropping it twice. He set it down, once he was done, with a satisfied smirk.

"Yeah. When I saw that it could still strangle Duke while being in his form, I didn't want to risk killing them both," Audrey explained.

"Thanks for that," Duke nodded towards her. She smiled back and took a sip of her martini.

"And your reaction to me the other day makes more sense now," Nathan continued, looking at Duke. "It looked like me when it attacked you."

"It was very convincing," Duke agreed. "But it couldn't' copy your numbness. You're a freak among freaks." Nathan rolled his eyes and then made a show of how easy it was for him to pick up his glass and drink from it.

"I'm just glad everything is back to normal," Audrey said.

"I'll make a fool of myself for that," Duke struggled with his bottle again and then awkwardly held it out for the others to tap their drinks to his. The glass clinked together and they each took a drink.

"So what do you think that thing was?" Nathan asked after a pause.

"I don't know. I guess it was like another Chameleon, but way more powerful," Audrey said, looking down at her glass.

"And it fed off tears," Duke snorted.

"Or maybe pain," Nathan suggested. Duke shrugged.

"Well, whatever it survived on, it's gone now," Audrey said, closing the matter. "I wonder who it really was?"

…..

Back at the hospital, down in the morgue Guiles Dover was standing over the Dr. Carr replica. He shook his head and snorted.

"Stupid skinwalker," he muttered to himself. "Laying claim to something that wasn't yours. I'd planned to take my revenge slowly by addressing your claim, but I see that's unnecessary now. I will, however, watch him closely for a while. Perhaps I may see what your interest was in him after all." He gave the corpse another once over and then walked away from the table. By the time he left the room he was no longer the short balding man Duke had seen. Instead he was someone no one in Haven would recognize. As he walked up the stairs to leave the morgue he rubbed his hand absently over the tattoo of a maze with four people at the compass points on the inside of his arm.

**Okay so last chapter done. I Thanks for reading and thanks for the reviews! Also I've the last chapter posted is just an alternate slash ending. If you don't like slash then don't read it. It's nothing explicit, just kissing and hinting really, but anyway it's there for those who wanted slash. :) **

**Rafocy**


	5. Alternate Slash Ending

_AN:_ _Alternate Slash Ending if you don't like it then don't read it!_

ONE MONTH LATER

Duke was sorting through the cash register at the end of a long night when Nathan appeared beside him.

"Hey." Duke jumped at the minor greeting.

"You really shouldn't sneak up on me like that," Duke said smirking.

"I didn't," Nathan answered quietly. "There's no one here. You could hear me coming the second I walked into the door. You're still flinching every time you see me." Duke let the grin slip and turned his gaze to the register again.

"Nathan, the things he did to me…"

"I know." Nathan pushed the drawer closed and gently turned Duke so they were facing each other.

"What are you doing?" Duke asked, trying to keep the edginess out of his voice.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Nathan whispered. He put his hands on the counter on either side of Duke and gently pressed their foreheads together. Nathan's eyes were closed, but Duke found he still wasn't quite sure of himself. They stood there for a minute in silence. After a little hesitation, Duke lifted his chin slightly. Nathan took the hint and pressed their lips together in a soft kiss. When he tried to deepen it, however, Duke turned away abruptly.

"I'm sorry. I can't…" he looked up into Nathan's eyes looking for understanding.

"It's okay," Nathan said, giving him a small smile. "I understand." He started to walk away, but Duke grabbed his wrist.

"Maybe I need to be in charge," he said thoughtfully. Nathan waited. "It might get rough. There's two nights of torture that I have to work through," Duke warned.

"You can't hurt me remember," Nathan said grinning. As if willing to test that statement, Duke yanked him forward into a rough kiss.

…

The next morning found Duke sifting through a large box of supplies. Nathan and Audrey walked in.

"Well, well, well. Come to make sure I'm not holding anything illegal Nathan?" Duke commented.

"Hey you didn't flinch," Audrey said, smiling.

"What can I say?" I just finally took charge." Duke gave Nathan a conspirator wink and grinned as the officer's face turned bright red.

**Yeah, I'm no good at slash detail so this was the best I could do. Thanks for reading!  
>Rafocy<strong>


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